After a wobbly start to the season David de Gea established himself as the No1 and the man who was given a chance to challenge him, Anders Lindegaard, fell from favour after the pre-Christmas 4-3 win at Reading in which he was culpable as the Royals scored all their goals in 15 first-half minutes. If Sir Alex Ferguson decides De Gea needs stiffer competition, then Stoke City's Asmir Begovic heads his options

Luka Modric Midfield Age 27 Cost £18m-£20m

Ferguson has admired the Croatian since his Tottenham days and, if Paul Scholes does retire, then Modric is a firm candidate to become United's string-puller-in-chief. Since a £33m move to Real Madrid he has started only 20 of 32 La Liga matches and, if José Mourinho, who signed him, departs as expected, the temptation to accept a move to Old Trafford would increase

Nigel de Jong Midfield Age 28 Cost £5m

Manchester City must rue allowing the Dutchman to leave for Milan for only £3.5m and at 28 he is in "the mature years" Ferguson speaks of as a footballer's peak. United have not had a midfield enforcer since Roy Keane left eight years ago and need one. De Jong knows the Premier League and played in the last World Cup final, so has the pedigree that makes his fee a bargain

Wilfried Zaha Forward Age 20 Cost up to £15m

The flying winger is a definite "in". He made his England debut in the winter and comes to United having had since January to prepare himself for a dream move after being signed then and loaned back to Crystal Palace. How he fares will be one of next season's intriguing sub-plots for United fans

Robert Lewandowski Forward Age 24 Cost £34m

The Poland striker is definitely leaving Borussia Dortmund this summer, so the question is whether Bayern Munich are keen for him to join Mario Götze as another recruit from their main rivals, to weaken them further. Ferguson is a fan and also acknowledges the competition. "Yeah, but Bayern Munich are strong with that too," he says

Gareth Bale Winger Age 23 Cost £50m

£50m is Daniel Levy's asking price for the Welsh forward and the sense is that Ferguson would love to take him as an on-song Bale could well help United overwhelm domestic challengers and make United a serious proposition on the continent

… and possible outs

Anders Lindegaard Goalkeeper Age 29 Value £4m

Shared the keeping duties with De Gea in the early part of the season but fell out of favour in the new year and may find himself replaced, possibly by Stoke's Asmir Begovic

Anderson Midfield Age 25 Value £10m-£11m

Last summer the Brazilian said this was the defining season of his career and, as it enters the final matches, he has made no impression. Anderson's 13 league appearances – seven starts – may be enough to receive a winners' medal but after six years at United he has only 69 in total and never features in a Ferguson big-game XI

Nani Forward Age 26 Value £16m

The Portuguese has two years left on his contract and, despite Ferguson rating him as among the finest talents at the club, he continues to prove a frustration. Wilfried Zaha's imminent arrival from Crystal Palace is another reason why the manager may decide to cash in his chips

Wayne Rooney Forward Age 27 Value £22-£24m

There have been no bids for Rooney despite the acknowledged interest from Paris St-Germain. The player does not want to leave and Ferguson says he will be offered a new contract as he has two years left in the summer. Yet until that occurs a question mark remains: on Monday Rooney was again pushed back into midfield and, as in the previous match, he was substituted, though this time he performed well in the 3-0 win over Aston Villa